


We're all mad here

by chailover



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cats, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-17
Updated: 2014-08-17
Packaged: 2018-02-13 13:51:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2153097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chailover/pseuds/chailover
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve is Dummy's knight in shining armor, Tony is a crazy person, and Bucky's a little shit.</p><p>For <a href="http://http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/">avengerkink</a>.<br/>Originally prompted <a href="http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/10266.html?thread=23086874#t23086874">here</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	We're all mad here

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from Alice in Wonderland, if google is to be believed. I've had most of this since November 2013, ugh.

 

**

The call had came in around 2:30 in the afternoon - while it wasn't entirely impossible for the situation to turn pear-shaped, Steve was expecting it to be an easy enough thing to rescue a cat from a tree. Especially since the call came from the Boroughs, a nice and very upscale area judging from the multimillion mansions passing by outside the window of his firetruck.

He should've known better than to think something like that though, he could already imagine Bucky laughing at him: there might've been a cat in the giant birch he pulled up to, but there was also a MAN in the tree. He was standing on the lowest branch, about ten or twelve feet from the ground, looking down. Even as he parked hurriedly, the man zipped up his jacket and then lowered himself into a sitting position on the branch. As Steve watched, the man _jumped_.

"Jesus, Joseph and Mary," Steve swore as he grabbed his gear and ran out. The man slowed his fall with a quick catch with both hands at another branch, but his landing was still hard and he stumbled, ending up on his butt. "Sir! Are you all right?!" he shouted, worried about the way the man was curled awkwardly, as if trying to protect an injury.

"Wha - Oh, hey. Fire department." The man said, looking up with a blink. There were leaves in his dark hair, but his eyes seem clear and aware. Steve knelt next to him, hand on his shoulder to indicate he shouldn't try to stand up.

"Don't move just yet, sir. Are you hurt anywhere?"

The man opened his mouth and his hoodie said, "mew." Steve watched, gaping a little as a lump wiggled in the chest area, almost like that Alien movie, and the man laughed before yelping, "Ow!" and unzipped his jacket a little, just in time to thwart the escape attempt of a gray kitten. "I'm fine, except where Dummy here decided I'd be a good scratching post." he stilled the cat with a gentle grip on the scruff, "See what you did here? It's not enough that you make me run out here to save your sorry ass, you're bothering New York's finest too."

"Mew!" the kitten protested piteously, turning huge baby blues on him. Steve had firmly believed he was a dog person up until that point, when he found himself reaching out and gently scratching 'Dummy' on the chin. Dummy purred at him and butted up against his hand.

"It's no bother." Steve said with a smile. "Is he yours?"

The man was giving Dummy the hairy eyeball. "Okay, so you like a guy about a bajillion times bigger than you, but you don't like petite, nice-smelling Rumiko? You're a weirdo." Dummy didn't even pay attention at all, so the man sighed and continued, "Yeah, he's mine. He and his crazy brothers."

"Tony!" Someone called from the sidewalk, and they both looked up to see a plump, older lady walk up to them. "is everyone all right?"

"Mrs. Arabogast," Tony greeted her with a wave, since Dummy seemed otherwise occupied with getting all the ear-scratches he can con out of Steve at the moment. "Yeah, I think so. No injuries except to personal dignity." Dummy rolled onto his back so Steve could scratch his belly. "Not that Dummy had any to start with." Tony added. "Er, did Rumiko...?"

Mrs. Arabogast sighed. "Yes, the poor dear seemed pretty upset when she took off...I would suggest you buy the girl some flowers and maybe a new pair of shoes to replace the ones that Jarvis scratched up." Tony winced.

"Jarvis is one of my other cats," Tony explained when Steve gave him a questioning look.

"I see," Steve said, then regretfully gave Dummy one last pat on the head before picking him up and handing him to Tony. "Come on," he said, standing up, "I'll check you over and then we'll call this rescue a success, okay?"

Tony shifted to cradle Dummy more securely in the crook of his arm. Dummy wiggled until he was almost draped over Tony's shoulder. "Yeah, okay, thanks." Tony said. Steve asked him some standard questions - name, address, does anything hurt, any dizziness, etc. Tony dutifully answered, all the while trying to keep Dummy from escaping.

"I think you two'll be alright." Steve concluded after he had everything down.

"We're good," Tony agreed with an easy grin, eyes drifting down to the name-patch on his uniform. He added a lazy salute to go with the, "Thanks again, Captain."

"Stay safe, Tony, Dummy," Steve nodded, and watched the pair go before shaking his head and going back to his truck, smiling the whole way.

**

"Was he cute?" was the first thing Bucky asked.

"Was he - Bucky!" Steve protested when that turned out to be the only response to his mention of this afternoon's adventures. "You should be asking if anyone was injured!"

"Come on, how long have I known you?" Bucky replied with a roll of the eyes. "If anyone had been hurt, you would've been moping all over the place, not all waxing poetic about the adorableness of kittens."

That was...unfortunately true. But there were ways to rib his best friend back. "Well, yes, he was cute." He admitted, watching Bucky perk up with interest. They've known each other since they were ankle-biters. For some reason Bucky had decided that Steve was worth his time and protection, even though for the majority of his life, Steve was nothing but a sickly drag on anything that kids could get up to.

Bucky stuck with him, no matter what shit life or Steve threw at him, even when Steve thought again and again, 'this is going to be the last straw'. The last time he thought that, he had told Bucky that he was bisexual, and that he was out of a place to live because his roommate at the time found out and couldn't handle it.

Bucky had said, "Fuck him." and called him an idiot for thinking that something like that would change anything. "You are aware that we're living in the twenty first century, right?" he asked as he dragged Steve apartment-hunting, and when they found a place, signed the lease without a hint of hesitation. Just like that, all of Steve's fears evaporated.

Steve could forgive any amount of teasing, for that.

But that didn't mean he wasn't going to tease back, especially since Bucky had taken the knowledge of Steve's preferences and relentlessly tried to set him up with any and all comers.

"He was really cute," Steve said a bit dreamily, watching as Bucky leaned forward, eyes intent. "Big blue eyes, really affectionate, even though we'd just met..."

And now Bucky looked alarmed, not without cause. Steve had been subjected to an unwanted grope or two (or ten) since he'd gotten his growth spurt, and no one got more up-at-arms about it than Bucky. Probably a carry-over from the years when Bucky had to defend Steve from unwanted (but probably not unprovoked) punches. "Affectionate? Did he get handsy with you, Steve?"

"I got handsy with him," Steve admitted. Bucky's jaw dropped, and Steve could see his best friend trying to work his brain around Steve getting handsy. With _anyone_. It didn't seem to be going anywhere so he took pity. "I rubbed his belly."

It only took a second before realization dawned. Bucky closed his mouth and glared. "You were talking about the cat."

Steve blinked at him with his best innocent expression. Bucky's mostly inured against it but sometimes it worked...though mostly it just drove him crazy. "Who did you think I was talking about?"

He got a punch in the arm for that, but it got Bucky to lay off.

**

Janet was their cheery dispatch on weekdays, and on Thursday afternoon, his walkie talkie emitted a loud burst of static before her perky voice came over the line. "Captain, you were in the Boroughs last week, right? I just got a call about a treed cat there."

"Again?" he asked.

"Ummmm," there was a young-sounding voice on the line now too, and it wasn't familiar. "Yeah, we're on 45th and National."

"You should be in the area, right?"

He was just a few blocks away, in fact, and said so. "I'll be right there, Mr...?"

"Mr. Parker will meet you at the door," Janet said and rattled off an address.

He pulled up to what would be considered extravagant even considering the average income of the residents in this particular zip code - a three story mansion with its own private street leading to a driveway that could park half a dozen cars and a garage that could probably hold more than that. It was built in a contemporary style made of elegant curves and glass, flanked all around by tall, mature trees that were too well manicured and maintained to be considered a forest.

There was no fence or gate, which was odd. But that just made it easier to park the firetruck relatively close to the monstrosity of mahogany and gold that was the front door, which opened as he jogged up the white marble steps.

In comparison to the outrageously expensive looking mansion, the tow-headed teenager in a t-shirt, jeans and scuffed sneakers that greeted him looked thankfully normal. "Er, hi? Thanks for coming so quickly." The boy said awkwardly, shuffling a little bit.

"Captain Steve Rogers," Steve said, offering his hand for a shake, which the young man accepted after a pause.

"I'm Peter Parker," the teenager stepped back and held the door open. "Come in, Dummy's in the tree in the backyard."

"...Dummy?" Steve asked as he entered, blinking. The boy started heading toward what Steve assumed was the backyard.

Peter took his echo as a sign of confusion, not recognition. "Yeah, it's a silly name, but Tony probably called him that too many times when they first met, and it's stuck." They passed what looked like an opulent sitting room, a dining room big enough for two dozen people with a glimpse of what looked like a corner of a gigantic ballroom. That was followed by a sun-room which hosted a huge skylight, winding stairs leading up to the second and third stories. The floor seemed to be made of midnight blue marble, so dark that it was almost black, interspersed with multi-colored specks that winked and caught the sunlight.

Peter grinned when he noticed that Steve had stopped to gape. "Yeah, the rest of the house is kinda stuffy - Tony didn't bother remodeling anything but the sun room and his labs, but if you think it looks awesome now, it's absolutely amazing at night."

Steve could imagine it - there would only be silver moon or starlight filtering through the skylight, which would make the ground below sparkle like the stars above. "Yeah." He agreed.

"Here we are," Peter said, looking a bit more relaxed now, as he pushed at double french doors. They opened into a half-covered patio with walkways that led to an Olympic sized pool on the left and a spacious lawn that looked like it can comfortably host a few weddings. There were more mature trees and Steve peered up at the one that Peter pointed out, finding Dummy mewing pitifully on a branch a good dozen feet from the ground.

"How did he even get up there?" Steve wondered.

"I don't know, it's a special skill or something." Peter sighed, "So, will you be able to get him down?"

**

Tony made his entrance like a crazy person, which, Steve was starting to suspect, was the norm for him.

"WHY IS THERE A FIRETRUCK OUT FRONT?!" He yelled while running into the backyard, wide-eyed, wild-haired, and skidding to a stop in front of the trio. Thankfully, at this point Steve, Peter and Dummy were all safely at ground level, so the worst the outburst did was make Steve jump and Dummy meow.

"Sorry, I can move it," Steve said automatically as Peter clutched at his chest.

"Jesus, you gave me a heart attack!" the young man yelped. "What happened to indoor voices?!"

"We're outdoors!"

Steve felt something warm and heavy bump against his leg and looked down to see another gray kitten, nearly identical to Dummy, twining itself around his ankles and mewing up at him. Tony had left the french doors open behind him and the kitten must have followed him out. In his arms, Dummy was squirming and wiggling, trying to get down. Thankfully his uniform was thick enough to protect against the needle-like claws, but he bent to let Dummy down anyway.

"Dummy was stuck in the tree, again!" Peter was protesting. "He was going to break something if he tried jumping down!"

"Why didn't you call me instead?"

"So YOU can break something trying to jump down after you got him?"

"He does have a point," Steve interjected, because Tony was so worked up that he didn't seem to notice that Dummy and his twin were busy rubbing against his legs, getting fur all over a very expensive looking charcoal gray suit.

Tony's eyes widened more when he saw Steve, recognition lighting in them along with no small amount of consternation. But he visibly controlled it and offered a polished smile and a hand. "Captain. Thank you for being Dummy's knight in shining armor again."

Steve shook his hand and Dummy seemed to take it as a cue to switch his attentions to Steve. "It's no problem, sir."

The polished smile melted into a real grin and the change was breathtaking. Steve was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to forget that smile whether the other man was wearing a worn hoodie or Armani. "You've rescued my cat twice, I think that means you can drop the 'sir'."

"Technically, you rescued him the first time,” Steve couldn’t help but grin back. “Fine. Mr. Stark, then."

"Tony." Tony corrected good-naturedly as Steve found himself with a cat that was trying to climb him like a jungle gym. "And I'd pick Dummy up, because he's an attention hog and won't stop until you do what he wants."

Peter's already got the other kitten in his arms. "Yeah, they're spoiled rotten, and whose fault is that?" he said with a roll of his eyes at Tony. "This is You." He picked up the kitten's paw and did a little wave.

"You?"

"I yelled, 'hey, you!' too many times during his formative years." Tony explained.

"Do you have any cats with normal names?" Steve asked as he gave into Dummy and picked the cat up. Dummy immediately tucked himself under Steve's chin and started to purr.

"Jarvis counts, I think," Tony waved them back toward the french doors and nodded his head toward the wide windowsill overlooking the backyard with the perfect view and covered in sunlight. A regal looking tuxedo cat observed them sedately from his resting place on the sill, completely unmoved by the amount of people in his domain or the undignified antics of his younger peers.

"Hi, Jarvis." Steve said dutifully. Jarvis flicked his tail.

"Wow, he likes you." Peter observed as he closed the door behind them and set You down, gesturing to Steve that he could do likewise with Dummy. "Usually he doesn't even acknowledge us lowly humans. Or, he eats peoples' shoes." Steve used the chance to start the minor write-up, like last time. Thankfully it'll boil down to 'cat successfully extracted without injuries or property damage', which would be a nice deviation from the normal emergencies he had to deal with. "Anyway, thanks for coming out to save Dummy...again, if what Tony said was any indication."

"It's no problem." Steve demurred, then felt a bump against his calf again. "Oh, hello again, Jarvis," he said with some surprise as the older cat had moved from his spot and was now on his way out after rubbing against Steve's leg.

There were stomping noises up and down as Peter gave him his contact info and statement, and Tony reappeared, shaking his head. "There was a window open on the second floor. The cleaning service probably forgot to close it when they went through yesterday. Dummy usually doesn't go in there but he can sense a tree-climbing opportunity at five hundred paces. Yes, you can," he continued at the cat, who was now getting underfoot as he herded them into the kitchen by dint of exclaiming that he wanted coffee. "I don't know why you like trees so much when you can't ever get down by yourself." he told Dummy with a sigh. "Anyone else want coffee?"

"I should go," Steve said with genuine regret. As good as coffee, pleasant company and adorable cats sounded right now, he was still technically on the clock. And if this place belonged to Tony as all signs seem to indicate, he didn't want to seem like he was taking advantage. "Still have to make the rest of my patrols."

Tony was subtly disappointed, judging by the way his smile dimmed, but Peter was more vocal. "Aw, really? It'll just be like, ten minutes."

Dummy hopped onto the counter with the adorable clumsiness of kittens, and would have slipped right off it if Tony hadn’t reached out and stopped his skid. That put him right in front of Steve, and Steve rubbed the top of Dummy's head with his finger and the kitten purred at him. It was very tempting to stay. You sauntered up and shameless demanded attention, which Steve gave to him as well. "I really shouldn't."

"He just wants you to stay because then I have to give him coffee too," Tony snorted. "Ignore him and heed your sense of responsibility. C'mon, I'll walk you out."

Steve gave Dummy and You a few last pats and stood up. "Thank you, sir - I mean, Tony."

"You are learning." Tony told him solemnly, but relented at the door and treated him to another real smile and a cocky little wave. "See you around, Captain."

Even though it wasn't entirely likely - and he wasn't going to examine his sense of disappointment over that - he echoed back, "See you around, Tony."

**

"But it's not fair to you guys," Steve said the third time as Jan pushed him toward the station bathroom with the tuxedo bag and an order to get himself presentable. Bucky's shift was up an hour ago, and he was already all done up, hair artfully tousled and his suit impeccably fitted. His shoes were at a mirror shine and he was carefully leaning against the wall, looking moments away from cracking up at Steve.

"Leave your hair and tie alone, I'll do it when you come out!" Jan commanded while the rest of his team laughed in good humor at him. Hank Pym, her long-time boyfriend and a senior tech in Forensics, tugged at his own tie a little, earning himself a light smack.

"Everyone should be going to the party," Steve protested from inside the men's bathroom.

Dum-dum snorted and yelled, "Be stuck hours at a stuffy gala with tiny, unfilling finger foods and face the prospect of dying by starvation and strangulation? No thanks, Captain!"

"Yeah, take one for the team!" Jim added, muttering his breath, "I hate ties. Torture devices, seriously."

It only took a few minutes to put on the tuxedo, since he had already showered and had been in the process of putting on his own suit before Jan waylaid him with the more formal attire. Steve ran fingers through his hair and sighed at his reflection. It was a gala for the Firefighter's Fund, it was supposed to be fun and a way for the city to raise money. His innate sense of fairness was offended that only selected ranking members of the team were invited.

He wasn't any better than anyone else on the team, just the fact that there was a 'captain' in front of his tag didn't mean he should get special treatment. Steve came out with the tie draped around his neck and a comb in hand, frowning.

"Aw, Steve, don't do the long face," Bucky drawled, amused. "You're ruining your movie star looks."

"Bucky," Steve sighed as Jan looked him over and tugged and patted here and there, getting the fabric to settle.

"Yeah, Captain. We've got our own party here," Dum-Dum boomed, waving a hand at the veritable feast the team had put together for a potluck. Behind them, the state-of-the-art information broadcasting system that doubled as the entertainment system was showing TMZ coverage of the Gala pre-party. Jan steered him to a chair and sat him down, immediately starting to mess with his hair.

Steve expected a lot more yanking and combing, but Jan’s hand was light and deft with both the styling and product. It seemed like no time passed at before she stepped back. "There," Jan pronounced, straightening his bowtie. Her serious expression melted into a smile. "You're gorgeous, Steve."

He blushed - Jan and Hank had been together for so long that they're pretty much known as HankandJan, but that didn't mean he couldn't be flattered from a compliment by a beautiful woman. "Thank you. You look very nice too, Jan."

"C'mon," Bucky winked as Jan took up her tiny clutch. The limo from the Foundation was already waiting outside, Steve was sure that was why Jan let him off easy on the hair and the tie. "Let's go knock some socks off."

"Hear, hear!" the rest of the team cheered.

**

The limo ride was thankfully brief and they were equally lucky that the reporters and media seemed more interested in the rich and famous than any actual firefighters. They still had to run the gauntlet of being nearly blinded by camera flashes going off, but no one tried to stop them for a soundbite.

"I am seeing spots," Bucky muttered under his breath. "Are you seeing spots, Steve?"

Steve rolled his eyes. "No, but that probably means my eyes are closed in all the pictures they took."

They followed the flow of people in and were efficiently greeted by waitstaff in waistcoats and cummerbunds and plied with champagne and hor d'oeuvres while the security checked them in. Steve took a moment to appreciate the decor as they waited for their table - the floor underfoot was marble with a thick, luscious red carpet, the chandeliers probably were made out of real crystal, and all the furnishings reeked of money. Steve didn't let himself be intimidated and turned an artist's eye on the design, which was ornate without being ostentatious, rich but also tasteful.

In no time at all, a beautiful woman with red-gold hair came over to them with a bright smile. "Party of four, for Captain Rogers and company of the NYFD?"

"Pepper!" Jan said with a delighted laugh, and the women embraced each other. "Wow, it feels like I haven't seen you in forever! And that dress is gorgeous!"

"Thank you, Jan. Hank, it's lovely to see you, and you two must be Captain Rogers and Lieutenant Barnes," Pepper said, shaking everyone's hand politely, but also with genuine pleasure. "We're so glad you can make it."

Jan stepped in with the official introductions, since she knew everyone, "Guys, this is Pepper Potts, CEO of Stark Industries and its multitude of sub-companies, a director on the board of the Maria Stark Foundation, which is hosting this event tonight, and our hostess for the evening. Pepper, you already know Hank, and this is Steve Rogers and James Barnes, Captain and Lieutenant of the 107th Division of the NYFD, also known as the Howling Commandos. "

"The pleasure is all ours," Bucky responded with an outrageous waggle of his eyebrows, and Steve fought down a grin with little success. He didn't know Pepper but it was obvious from the way that Jan and Hank acted that they knew her and liked her, and since neither of them were freaking out about Bucky's hopeless flirting tendencies, he was optimistic that Pepper won't be offended.

"Please don't mind him, he's badly socialized," he said anyway, nudging Bucky a bit.

"I'm used to it," Pepper laughed as she led them into the converted ballroom, weaving expertly through the various clusters of the rich and famous, leading them to a laden table near the front of the stage. "Here's our table. Everyone has name-cards, but feel free to shuffle around if you'd like. I'll try to find our host and bring him over for introductions, but the event'll start soon. If I don't make it back in time, order whatever you'd like from the servers and get comfortable, I'll be right back!"

A quick survey showed that Hank and Jan were seated next to each other with Pepper, then it was another person, and finally, Steve and Bucky. Bucky laughed as he pulled his chair out, pointing to the card for whoever was supposed to on Steve’s other side. It just read 'you know who I am' in neat block script.

The servers descended on them in a flurry of white aprons and tall glasses of champagne and water, taking their orders for dinner efficiently. Steve was preoccupied with making sure all the extra finger-foods and drinks didn’t spill over into the as-of-yet-absent host’s spot when the general noise level of the room died down.

“Hello? Is this on?” Someone said over on the stage, and then the lights dimmed slightly. “Everyone, if I may have your attention please. Welcome to the 22nd Annual Firefighters’ Charity Gala!” Steve clapped along with everyone else as the announcer went on to thank the Maria Stark Foundation and various other sponsors, cracked a few jokes, and went into the program for the night.

Steve listened with half his attention as he fended off Bucky’s repeated attempts to reach over and snag his little hor'dourves. That was, until a familiar voice came from the stage, completely distracting him, and he wasn’t quite fast enough to intercept Bucky’s grab for his food.

Bucky stuffed the spoils of his victory in his mouth - a shrimp puff, and raised an eyebrow. “What’s up with you?” he asked, glancing from Steve to the stage, where his gaze was riveted.

Steve had seen Tony now in a ratty hoodie and an Armani suit, wearing both his polished, polite-for-company smile and an honest-to-goodness delighted grin. He wouldn’t’ve recognized the man up on the stage now if it weren’t for the familiar voice, distance and a formal tuxedo making the other man look completely different. “Nothing,” he finally managed to say, tearing his eyes away and glaring without much heat at his best friend. “And stop stealing my food, jerk.”

Up front, Tony was telling a light-hearted anecdote about his family and their close relations with the fire department - “Mostly because my dad and I had a knack for engineering projects that end in flames,” he joked, earning a round of laughter. “My mother was always grateful that New York’s finest was there to extract us from our burning labs.”

Bucky was looking more and more suspicious but Steve couldn’t quite tear his eyes away, because even if this wasn’t the honest grin that he had seen on the other man’s face during Dummy’s antics, Tony still had a way of making his audience feel special, like he was addressing each one of them individually. Apparently in addition to having more money than god - which Steve had suspected, what with the mansion and the last name of Stark, and all - he also got an unfair portion of charm and charisma. Not to mention adorable cats.

“Oh, my god,” Bucky murmured, and the tone set off enough alarms in Steve’s head that it finally dragged back his attention as Tony was wrapping up the opening speech. Bucky was looking at him with equal parts surprise, amusement, and unholy glee. Steve had a very bad feeling. “You mean _he’s_ the guy with the cats?”

“What - no,” Steve said automatically, because _don’t encourage Bucky_ was a lesson etched into his bones by now, but his innate sense of honesty ultimately won and he had to amend with, “okay, yes, he has the cats, what does that have to do with anything?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Bucky repeated, still gleeful. “You’ve only been mooning over the guy for the last week, that’s all.”

“What? No, I have not!” Steve hissed back, trying to think back about how he acted this past week. He had maybe been a little distracted, that’s all. On the stage, Tony was wrapping up his speech. Bucky waggled his eyebrows at Steve.

“Yeah? Did you forget the general theme of your most recent sketches? Adorable kittens and dark-haired guys that aren’t me ringing a bell?”

Bucky was his best friend in the entire world, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t a little shit sometimes. A little shit that snooped and knew him better than he knew himself. Okay, so he had been mooning a little. “I hate you.” Steve groaned.

“You love me,” Bucky replied breezily, “Now, smile, here he comes!”

Tony made his entrance like a mostly normal person this time, an outlier from all the other times in Steve’s experience. There were greetings and handshakes all around, and when Steve stood and offered his own hand, the other man’s polished celebrity smile turned genuine.

“Mr. Stark,” Steve said. Tony took his hand and shook it firmly.

“Captain, I distinctly remember asking you to call me Tony,” the dark haired man reminded him with a grin.

There was a distinct and insistent nudge against his kidneys from behind. It felt very much like Bucky’s bony elbow. His best friend was smirking when Steve shot him a glare over his shoulder. “Okay, Tony.” He managed, because Tony was still holding onto his hand and smiling that smile. “Please, call me Steve.”

“A pleasure to re-make your acquaintance, Steve,” Tony said, and was it just Steve, or was it getting hot in here?

“The pleasure is all mine, Tony,” he replied, still staring a little.

“You two can gaze soulfully into each others’ eyes while sitting down,” Bucky called from his left, snickering a little when it made them jump and release each other's hand. Steve could feel his face burn and kept his eyes down as he half-sat, half-tripped back into his seat.

“I hate you,” he muttered. Tony laughed. Bucky smirked.

“So, Mr. Stark,” he drawled. “Tell us about your cats.”  
**

End

**Author's Note:**

> (whisper: and they lived happily ever after)


End file.
